Elements of E-Rhetoric: Course Syllabus

Course Syllabus

completed work is posted here

Required Texts for Spring 2009

Stoner, Mark, and Sally Perkins. Making Sense of Messages. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2005. Amazon

Tues 13 Jan

Intros
CourseStatement
Getting oriented to the subject and method

Thurs 15 Jan

The second text for this course: 140 Characters: A Style Guide for the Short Form, Dom Sagolla, is available in Kindle for $9.95. You don't need a Kindle to read it; the Kindle Reader for PC is available on the Amazon Kindle Store. 140 Characters is also available as an iPhone app for $5.00.
Questions on syllabus
Intro to the wiki

for Tues 19 Jan

Read Stoner: Chap 1. Take notes on the wiki if you wish.
OnePageIntro
- Write a one-page introduction of yourself to the class. This should not be one word less than 200 - and not one word more than 250. Try, in your manner, to illustrate or exemplify something of your personality. Write this as you would a typical writing assignment in a typical class, using whatever technologies you typically do. But the paper you bring to class should be word processed. Bring it to class in paper.

Tues 19 Jan

In-class work with Stoner, Chap 1 and WhatMakesThisRhetorical

Thurs 28 Jan

OnePageIntroPart2.
BalconyStance
Chaps 2 - 3, especially postion of critical stance and method
Seeing as a critic: http://www.emilycummins.co.uk/

for Tues 2 Feb [draft]

An exercise in description: Start a new page on your wikiname page: DescriptionExerciseYourInitials. Use two headings in your page: Notes, and Description. Use http://www.emilycummins.co.uk/: Home page, About page, and Current page. Take notes towards developing a 300 - 500 word description of these pages, concluding with a paragraph characterizing the message and its context. Important: Don't jump straight into drafting paragraphs or even sentences. Use notes - lists of observations - that you refine into a prose description. In the end, draft one paragraph that describes the rhetorical situation, one or two that describe on the target itself, and a final one that characterizes the target.
read Stoner, chap 4.

Tues 2 Feb

in class look at description - and another look at Emily Cummins's web site.

Follow Weblogs and Wikis on Twitter. Get updates on design, texts, assignments, announcements for E-Rhetoric and Weblogs and Wikis

for Thurs

re-read Stoner on Scudder, pp 46-7.
Return to the Emily Cummins site <http://emilycummins.co.uk> and your Description wiki page. Look again at the Cummins site and observe the three pages: home, about, current. Make notes - and stay with notes for now - of what you observe. Use neutral language, assume a balcony view - the stance from outside the rhetorical exchange. Observe and describe the pictures, the site and page design, the texts. Characterize each - again, using neutral language - as your observing develops. Make notes on the context this site addresses. Look again.
Note glandular reactions if you wish - but note them under an appropriate heading apart from your description notes.
Use bullets or just lines of observation - whatever suits you. But you should have multiple screens of observations before you're done.

Thurs 4 Feb

Worth looking at : http://www.wordle.net/ Give it a text, it creates a frequency cloud.

some notes on descriptions of Emily Cummins pages
Start ProWebPresenceProject: form pairs or groups and plan your strategy.

Start ProWebPresenceProject: form pairs or groups and plan your strategy.

start descriptions of content and context of Stallman site
keep referring to Stoner, chap 4, and chap 3
for considering prose, use BasicSentencePatterns

Other elements to consider and describe

links: frequency, placement
lists
design of the page: headings, length, organization/sequence down the page
navigation
footer information
...

Tues 9 Feb

Over the weekend, you got started on describing the two pages: deciding on a description strategy, getting down to some close and controlled description.

Workshop: in class work on ProWebPresenceProject.
We'll share some descriptive material and research near the end of the session.

Thurs 11 Feb

No class. Continue ProWebPresenceProject. This might be the time to revisit the Cummins site.
For Thurs and the weekend: Some new vocabulary will help you start to make sense of the two sites. In a new page or under a heading on your main project page, make some notes on the Text-Context interaction for both the Cummins and Stallman site. Stoner, chap 4, pp 60 - 66. This means considering how each site meets or does not meet the implicit expectations or conforms or departs from the conventions of this kind of site. I'll look for your notes on text-context interaction on Saturday.
Notes on GenreCharacteristicsOfPersonalWebPresenceSites is started. You may refer to these and others for text-context notes
Deadline: descriptions and text-context interaction notes should be finished by end of day on Monday, 15 Feb.
For Tues, read Stoner, chap 9, for the search model we'll use for this project.

Notes on GenreCharacteristicsOfPersonalWebPresenceSites

Tues 16 Feb

In class review of description notes, context notes, and text-context interaction notes. Informally present some shared observations. A comment on Stoner and Perkins, p 76, Note 1.
Some notes on chap 9: getting comfortable with the concepts

Thurs 18 Feb

Class cancelled. Prof Morgan ill.

Deadline: descriptions (including context) and text-context interaction paragraphs (chap 4) should be finished by end of day on Monday, 15 Feb. See ProWebPresenceProject page.
Deadline: analysis (chap 5) finished by start of class, Tues, 4 Mar.

Tues 23 Feb

Finishing up text/context notes on the
In class notes on chap 9: Ethos
In class notes on Stoner, chap 5: Analysis- focus on identifying patterns.
Read chap 5: Analysis for in-class work on Thursday

Thurs 25 Feb

In class work time: Analysis
This is the general question you're looking at

What rhetorical devices and strategies do these two rhetors use to create a professional ethos on these two web presence sites - and how do they use those devices and strategies?

Start a new page from your project page: WebPresenceAnalysisYourInitials or your group name.
You need a system to help focus your observation
- Lay out analysis page using patterns headings on pp 79ff, or
- Lay out the analysis page by devices that appear to be dominantly used on each site: design, links, text, images or
- Lay out the analysis page by rhetorical concepts: use of stylistic devices, use of arrangement, use of appeals, use of delivery.
Your analysis will be a set of notes, not a completed essay or argument: trace your analytical observations in writing. The notes may be rough, but use paragraphs and headings to organize the notes as they develop. Completeness: Thoroughly address each of the pattern headings on pp 79ff, or be thorough in covering the devices or strategies you have identified.

Tues 2 Mar

Informal presentation of analysis of the two sites. I'll ask one or two groups or people to start, then call on others to fill out areas.

Thurs 4 Mar

Chap 6: Interpretation: In-class composition of Do's and Don'ts in constructing ethos for your professional web presence site.
TipsForConstructingAProfessionalWebPresenceEthos
Submit materials for this project: If you have written description or analysis notes, submit them. I will review what y0u have on the wiki.

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